Sir Peter said: "Cains wanted a bottle that would encapsulate the 'Best of British' activity and provide a fitting tribute to Liverpool during its Capital of Culture year.

"To me, the Union Jack seemed like the perfect choice - it's an enduring symbol of national pride and one of the few things that is instantly recognisable as being British."

The specially-labelled beer will be available until December. It is available in the Tate Britain and the Tate Modern galleries as well as supermarkets.

No-one better

Cains chief executive Sudarghara Dusanj said: "Sir Peter Blake is one of country's best loved artists and, through his work with the Beatles, has built a strong affiliation with Liverpool so we couldn't think of anyone better.

"The final design is truly striking."

Sir Peter designed the album sleeve for The Beatles' Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band record.

The front cover of the album featured a colourful collage of more than 70 life-sized cardboard models of famous people including Marlon Brando and Karl Marx.

The Beatles commissioned Sir Peter Blake to assemble all the people in history they would have liked to see in an imaginary audience, such as Stan Laurel, Marlene Dietrich and Oscar Wilde.

The album won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, the first rock album to do so, and Best Contemporary Album in 1968.